Security software firm Trend Micro, which has its European headquarters in Cork, has agreed a three-year deal with Interpol to help support the police agency combat cybercrime.

The company, which employs just under 550 staff at its operation in IDA Business Park off Model Farm Road, said it would supply Lyon-based Interpol with additional knowledge, resources and tactics to decrease cybercrime on a global scale.

It will also assist the agency in providing a cybercrime investigation training program to improve techniques and increase capabilities of its member countries.

Cybercrime costs the global economy as much as $575 billion a year and remains a growth industry with attacks on banks, retailers and energy companies on the rise, according to a recent report by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“Over the next three years, Trend Micro will share its threat information analysis with Interpol officers through its Trend Micro ‘Threat Intelligence Service’,” it said.

“The goal of this initiative is to investigate, deter and ultimately prevent cybercrimes. This effort will also help to bridge the gap in information-sharing between the public and private sectors.”

Trend Micro’s Cork arm, established in 2003, oversees the company’s European, African and Middle East (EMEA) markets.

Originally conceived as a centre delivering back-office support, the operation now has responsibility for several other functions, including financial shared services, business application services centre, and technical support.